Urinary Retention

[EmmaHealy23]

Good morning ladies!!
Just wondering if anyone else has suffered with this during pregnancy? I’m finding it hard finding anyone else to speak to about it, most people have had a catheter after childbirth but not before.

Any reply would be appreciated!

[Rachy334]

I had this in both my pregnancies between 12 and 14 weeks and had to have a catheter after ending up in a&e both times and having 1500ml drained because I couldn’t wee! The consultant said that mine was due to a retroverted uterus and would correct itself by 14 weeks as the baby moves upwards. I found that trying lots of positions and lying on my front for a while did help sometimes before having to go to a&e xx

[AndWhat]

Are you constipated? This can cause retention at times

[EmmaHealy23]

Wow! Didn’t expect any responses haha thanks for sharing guys.

I had to go in at 13 weeks, had 3500ml drained out, was in agony!!! Then had the indwelling catheter for 2 weeks then went into retention again, drained 2500ml and bag back in for another week. Since then I’ve been able to wee by myself but when I FINALLY got my outpatient appt with a urologist (I’m 22 weeks now) and he said even though I’m managing to wee on my own I’m still retaining about 750ml even after I’ve been.

I guess my question is...did it come back during pregnancy at a later date or go by itself? They have given me no reason for it but think now my bladder is so stretched it doesn’t work as well.

Did anyone have any tests later ie after the baby was born?

Thanks guys xx

[Rachy334]

Wow I bet that was agony! The first pregnancy I had the catheter in 4 days, the second was 10 days and after it was removed I didn’t have the problem again xx

[EmmaHealy23]

I’m hoping I’ve seen the back of it too, I’d never even heard of it before this, the reason it got left so long as because my GP was convinced it was the baby lying on the bladder...I was only about 8 weeks the first time I went to see her!!! Would have to be one heavy baby!

So I guess you had it with both pregnancies? It’s one of those lesser known pregnancy side effects!

[Rachy334]

When I looked it up the first time no one had heard of it but luckily the consultant this time had and said that between 8-14 weeks it was the position of the baby rather than the size and then after 14 weeks when it started to rise out the pelvis it should get better, hopefully that’s the end of it for both of us! Xx

[annlee3817]

I had this twice at 15 and 16 weeks, the consultant said that he thinks my uterus was stuck in my pelvis, I only had the catheter twice and for a week and was miserable. He said that when the uterus doesn't pop out of the pelvis at the right stage the baby is growing and then presses down so much on your bladder that it stops you from being able to go.

[annlee3817]

My uterus popped out after the second time with the catheter, when it doesn't it has to be manually flipped out. I had a rather uncomfortable examination to check it had flipped out. Didn't happen again and apparently is very rare, consultant was more worried that my bladder would be permanently stretched, I'm ok post pregnancy.

[EmmaHealy23]

I’m already 22 weeks so hopefully they would have noticed by now if it hasn’t popped into it’s correct place?

Sounds like it’s one of those odd things but we have all had it around the same sort of time, late 1st and early 2nd tri so I’m hoping that it might be gone for Good!

Hated that catheter!!!!!

[Rachy334]

Yep hopefully we’re past it now! I hated the catheter too, I had a tap (think it’s called flip-flow) rather than a bag so if anyone has to have one I’d definitely recommend asking for one of those, much better than a bag as you’d just go to the toilet and open the tap when you needed to.

[annlee3817]

You'd definitely have noticed, as you would have kept getting retention every week :) usually a good stint with the catheter allows the bladder to push back against the uterus and help flip it out :) that's what my consultant said :) happens to 1 in 10,000 women from what I read

[EmmaHealy23]

Phew that makes me feel better! Yeah it's been gone ever since, and even though when they have scanned my bladder I'm still retaining about 750ml I can still go to the toilet with no problems

Wow it really is quite rare then! All the doctors I spoke to were a bit baffled, I don't think they had seen it in pregnancy before.

I really do hope it's gone for good!! X